Probe arrays, particularly microarrays, such as GENECHIP® arrays from Affymetrix, have wide ranging applications in the pharmaceutical, biotechnology and medical industries. In general, a probe array is exposed to a sample, such that probes bind to analytes or targets (if any) in the sample to which the probes have affinity. The probe arrays are then scanned to determine to which probes the target(s) in the sample have hybridized. The identity of the probes hybridized to the sample provides various information regarding the target(s) in the sample. For example, arrays are useful for sequencing target nucleic acids, expression monitoring, detecting mutations in targets, estimating copy number of targets or simply detecting the presence of a target (e.g., of a particular pathogen).
The field of nucleic acid assays has been transformed by microarrays which allow monitoring of gene expression events, expression profiling, diagnostic and genotyping analyses, among other applications. Substrates bearing arrays of probes (fragments of nucleic acids) are preferably produced or manufactured in a manner that allows assays such as expression monitoring, genotyping and other studies to be performed accurately, reproducibly and efficiently. With more sensitive applications being contemplated for microarrays in the fields of pharmacogenomics and diagnostics, for example, there exists a need in the art for additional devices for manufacturing and processing of microarrays.